Bring On The New Year...

Good morning! Another new year is racing toward us. In some ways it seems this past year has spun and run at an amazing speed.  The Christmas holidays were a whirlwind of activity for us and flew by so quickly. I am usually sad to see all the colors of Christmas put away in tubs and boxes and closed up in the back of closets, but not this year. For some reason I could not get it all down fast enough and felt the need to "January clean" instead of spring clean. Maybe it's just a feeling of needing to simply life in tangible and spiritual ways.  Kind of getting down to the nitty gritty of what is important and what might be just fluff that needs to go away.

As you see in the picture below though, I always leave this one touch of Christmas color cheer for all year long. It's just happy.

My kind husband's favorite quote that we hear so very often.
A great thought to start each day and the new year.

Kind of infatuated with this new little coffee mug wall rack.
Come on over for a hot cup of java.

The sweet sign of truth about God above the coffee mugs is a favorite Christmas gift from my big brother Brad.

Another favorite and thoughtful gift from my little brother is the quaint window with our family pictures in the panes. The window is from the old directors cabin at CBH. A gift that warms my heart.

I pray that this new year will bring us all closer to the One who formed our bodies and minds and hearts. He loves us and forgives us and gives us life.  I pray we will draw near to Him. Know Him. Study Him. Fall in love with Him. Trust Him. Obey Him and serve Him.

We heard a wonderful talk while we were in New York City about being in the Word and knowing scripture.  David Nassar said that so many people love the idea of God and the emotion around God but when you ask them what their favorite scripture is they go blank.  He also said that doesn't it make sense not knowing the Word if we consider Jesus the most important aspect of our lives. He believes that we should at least have one scripture memorized for every year of our lives.

He is right. I would think that should be a snap. How hard would it have been to have memorized one scripture a year? Not that hard. Honestly, I need to play catch up. I want to pledge to memorize one scripture a week this year.  This is not just to check it off a list or to feel better about myself.  This is to lay it on my mind and heart so that the Spirit of the living God can bring truth to mind when I am given chance to witness about Him and teach about Him. It's about having His Word on my heart so that I can live a more loving and obedient life before Him. It just seems right and good. I pray for a willing heart to do so.

Let's look into the new year with hope, peace and anticipation of what God will do through and in our lives this year.

Blessings! Amy